Stress can be associated with gathering, movement, weather, noise, or any activity that tends to increase fear and/or anxiety. Regarding meat production livestock, the harvest of those animals comprises a major incidence of anxiety and stress. Such pre-harvest stress results in decreased meat quality, sometimes referred to as “dark cutting” meat. One embodiment of Applicants' method reduces the incidence of “dark cutting” meat, reduces cellular weep post harvest, and increases the dressing percent of cattle.
A phenomenon often called “dark cutting” costs the Beef industry about $5.81 per head marketed, or about $162,000,000 in the year 2000. It impacts the 3% of the cattle marketed. One embodiment of the present invention comprises a composition administered pre-harvest to animals to reduce the occurrence of dark-cutting meat. Such meat-producing animals include, for example, ruminants such as bovine, ovine, and caprine animals. The invention further relates to methods to administer Applicants' composition, where those methods include adding Applicants' composition to the animal's feed, direct oral administration, and/or nasal administration.
The phenomenon of transformation of muscle into meat after slaughtering animals rests on glycogenolysis, which results in the accumulation of lactic acid in the muscle fiber. The pH of the muscle decreases to reach values normally less than 6. It is known, however, that for certain muscles an anomaly exists in the acidification process after death, which is manifested by a failure of the pH of the meat product to eventually decrease to less than 6. These continuously high-pH meats are recognizable by their deep red color, sometimes almost black, which justifies their being named as dark-cutting meat, or DFD meats (Dry, Firm, Dark).
This phenomenon of high-pH is explained particularly by a premature exhaustion of the stock of muscle glycogen before slaughter, which results in an insufficient lactic acid level, and hence, an insufficient lowering of the pH: the latter is then greater than or equal to 6. The post-mortem biochemical reactions which arise there from are responsible for the mediocre quality of this meat.
In fact, apart from the color, the high-pH has other unfavorable consequences on the meat, such as considerable water retention capacity, mediocre organoleptic properties and especially poor preservation. It is well established that dark-cutting meats are considered defective, and are subject to notable commercial depreciation. They represent, therefore, an economic problem prejudicial to the meat industry.
The exhaustion of the stock of glycogen, recognized as being at the origin of the occurrence of these dark-cutting meats, is principally due to stress and to the physical efforts of the animal before slaughter. Various studies have enabled preventive measures to be discovered against the occurrence of dark-cutting meats, which measures seek to control the extrinsic factors causing stress in the animal, and consequently, excessive consumption of muscular glycogen.
These measures consist particularly in not mixing animals of diverse origin, of optimizing the conditions of unloading, reducing the transport time as well as the stalling at the abattoir. However such measures, even if they contribute to limiting the causes of the appearance of dark-cutting meat, have not eliminated this phenomenon.
The American system will penalize black cutter (black color) beef by no more than one full grade (i.e. Prime to Choice, Choice to Select, or Select to Standard). Dark cutter (dark color) beef will be discounted by less than one full grade (i.e. High Choice to Low Choice). It is therefore possible for dark colored beef to be graded Choice, Select, or Standard in the United States. The Canadian grading system will automatically remove all dark cutter beef from the four high quality grades (A/AA/AAA/Prime) to the B4 grade.
What is needed is a composition, and method using that composition, that increases the weight of saleable meat products from meat-producing animals, minimizes the cellular weep of those meat products harvest, and increases the water content of those meat products.